“The Orioles give us hope. The Orioles give us pride. The Orioles remind us what it means to be Maryland tough and Baltimore strong.”
That message was delivered by Maryland Gov. Wes Moore just a few hours before Opening Day against the Los Angeles Angels at a sold-out Camden Yards.
Moore was referencing the new ownership group, headed by Baltimore native David Rubenstein, which has energized the front office, players and fan base. He also cited the challenges facing the city with the recent collapse of the Key Bridge.
For Rubenstein, the day was a dream come true. He went to City College High School, which is directly across the street from the Orioles’ former home, Memorial Stadium. The next order of business is dealing with the potential naming rights for Camden Yards and bringing the All-Star Game back to Baltimore.
“It’s an exciting day for me, personally,” Rubenstein said in his first media appearance with the club. “I’ve loved the Orioles since I was 5 years old. … What I hope to do is make sure this is not the high-water mark. Today is an easy day to say, ‘Everything is great, and hopefully we’ll win Opening Day.’ I want the high water mark to be in the fall when we go to the World Series.”
Orioles legend and Baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken is also part of the new ownership group. He has learned valuable lessons as the owner of the Aberdeen IronBirds, and he is looking forward to playing a bigger role with the big league club.
“I’m excited to watch the games,” Ripken said. “The last couple years I’ve come to more games, and I plan on being here a whole lot more now. I’m proud of the Orioles. They’re looked upon all around the country as a really good baseball organization, so I’m really proud of that.”
The entire Orioles organization is pulling in one direction to bring home the franchise’s first World Series title in 41 years.
Almost every publication predicts the Orioles will either win the AL East or make the playoffs as a wild-card team after the club won 101 games last season. The players are embracing the expectations.
“We’re just going to go out there and play our game,” shortstop Gunnar Henderson said. “We can’t do anything more. Looking forward to getting this season started with a fresh slate and see what we can do. There is a lot of excitement around the ballpark. Looking forward to seeing Camden Yards packed out again.”
The Orioles opened a season at home for the first time since March 29, 2018, when they played the Minnesota Twins. There is palpable excitement among the fan base, which began filling the seats at Camden Yards almost three hours before the first pitch against the Angels.
The Orioles have a deep and talented roster that doesn’t yet include Jackson Holliday, the consensus No. 1 prospect in baseball. The talented infielder was sent down to Triple-A Norfolk to work on his approach against left-handed pitching and master second base. If there was disappointment about Holliday not making the roster, it was difficult to tell considering fans’ raucous reactions during pregame introductions.
The Orioles finished spring training with the best record in MLB at 23-6, adding to the excitement in the city. While a strong performance in the spring doesn’t necessarily translate to regular-season success, the players expect that production to carry over.
“There just wasn’t a huge gap between your starters and maybe your B squad or whatever people like to call it,” outfielder Austin Hays said of the Orioles’ performance in Florida. “It’s filled out now throughout the minor leagues. There are a lot of stars in the making. That is why the spring record was so good. … The organization is in a really good spot.”
The Orioles’ biggest acquisition this offseason was 2021 National League Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes, who got the Opening Day assignment.
Burnes put together a dazzling performance, allowing just one run on a first-inning homer to Mike Trout. The right-hander struck out 11 hitters — two shy of a franchise record for Opening Day — in six innings in the 11-3 win. At one point, he retired 16 batters in a row.
“It was fun,” Burnes said. “Overall a good day. Came out healthy, came out with win, so all in all it was a good day.”
Anthony Santander homered over the left-field fence and had four RBIs, while Adley Rutschman went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and three runs. Every starter reached base safely at least once.
Rubenstein had to be happy with that performance and is looking forward to the Orioles galvanizing the city and bringing home a championship. He is also lobbying for continued fan support.
“It requires everybody to pull together,” Rubenstein said. “Nobody’s ever won a World Series by having a fan base that didn’t care about the team.”
Photo Credits: Kenya Allen/PressBox